A new report released by a Nebraska legislative committee overseeing the Corrections Department says progress has been made to ease prison overcrowding, but not fast enough.

Committee chair, Senator Laura Ebke of Crete, says it’s important lawmakers understand challenges remain as the state works to lower the prison population. Ebke says that has become more difficult as veteran lawmakers leave and new lawmakers face an old problem.

Ebke says she personally doesn’t favor building more prisons, because Corrections has had trouble staffing the prisons Nebraska has now.

If the prison population exceeds 140-percent of designed capacity by 2020, the courts might order prisoners to be released. Capacity now stands at 155-percent.